4: Madness
by ChiptuneImpulse
Summary: The world left a bitter impression on young Adachi. His pride and ego were above all else. Some swearing.


**AN: This was really hard to write without making it sound sympathetic. Adachi's end game confession makes him act like sort of self glorified drama queen. I keep thinking, how do I write a sociopath? Then it hit me. To make him a mirror of the Investigation Team. **

**Also it bothers me that this guy is popular and makes me wonder about the fandom...**

* * *

_December 11th_

"It's all smoke and mirrors from here _kiddies_." Adachi taunted, voice echoing from all directions but at the same time nowhere.

The investigation team had been chasing Adachi for what seemed like an eternity, but wherever they went in the dungeon had been nothing but more white space. Unlike the other times, there had been no stairs/levels or shadows.

White space and a vast nothingness that had stretched for miles and miles.

This was Adachi's_ inner self_.

Kanji, in frustration, stomped his foot on the ground and a crack was made.

Fog emitted and the team had dropped down from a white canvas to a dark abyss that flashed like film.

Each victim pushed in appeared in front of their eyes, but as they tried to reach out, there was nothing to do but watch as their muted screams were of that of a projector echoing.

For every time he pushed them in, sepia took over and a younger Adachi was seen looking up. Frame by frame showing him, his hen-pecked nervous looking father and his pushy, expensively dressed mother.

From a distance, shillioutes were animated to imitate yelling against a almost whit-yellowish wall.

The next scene showed a young, 16 year-old, Adachi laying awake in bed before the only sound in the "movie" echoed.

The sounds of glass emitted from the living room and Adachi put his _hands on his head_. Then to his ears and braced himself for the next shouting match.

* * *

If he was smart enough, he could go anywhere and be anything he wanted. It said in red text on a black background.

He could get away from this hellhole...

_Hope_ filled him.

* * *

His alarm pulled him from his dreams of grandeur and safety.

The walk to school had been the same as usual. He biked without much emotion or energy and moved mechanically. Only his thoughts were human, but even then logical.

_Test scores and athletic performance defined you. It not mattered your behavior, as long as you did well in performance._

He had not taken this lesson to heart because those brats who didn't study for days at a time like he had, when sleep was rare, had did better whereas he did abysmal. Their higher scores compared to his average one.

He crumpled the papers and vowed to devote more time to studying, least his mother get on his case again.

* * *

When it came to social gatherings, he had been awkward around other people, letting them push the scenario into whatever direction. When others tried to talk to him, he tried to feign being friendly, it only pushed people away and he couldn't understand why. This puzzled him and when he tried to befriend a shy girl like himself, she was terrified of him, like he was some criminal.

When one day a girl flirted with him, he was over-joyed. It later turned out to be a dare and the flirty girl left laughing at his expense. She had told him that he would end up alone and that no one wanted anything to do with him.

_Bitch._

His efforts at establishing any meaningful relationship failed as he looked at the people around them all smiling and laughing at his misfortune and misery.

* * *

Average.

It defined him, there was nothing special or unique about him, other than the charisma to drive others away. Yet he made it as student council president. He cared less about the issues and more about the power.

Yet when people came to him, he felt like he could achieve anything on his own. He was no caged bird.

He sold himself to the people with a false smile and promised to uphold to his empty promises, internally.

* * *

His term had not been successful.

He forgot to fill paperwork, since he was more interested in the budget and where it was going. (It went towards better gym equipment, books and a private amount towards himself that went claimed as "missing.")

So when the school festival came around, there had barely been one. The student body turned on him and he was impeached.

Despite the better equipment, he hadn't been remembered for his good deeds and all credit for his work was stolen by his peers. He had tried to make the best of his situation but by the time he was studying for entrance exams for college, despair had ensnared him.

He couldn't live up to his mother's impossible expectations and as a result often dreaded going/being home and the students at school looked at him with scorn.

Everyone had given him that same contemptible look and it drove him into a corner. It was _their_ fault after all.

* * *

By the time he had gotten to college, his mother had left the family because his father was too poor to sustain her lavish life style.

When they moved it had been to a nice empty apartment. (His mother kept the nice house.)

Irritated and yet relieved Adachi had come home more often only to find a shell of a man staring into the static of TV most nights. He hated women and how the law had sided in their favor. He had learnt that even as a male with power, that life was harsh and you weren't automatically successful unless you were talented by selling yourself by sacrificing for others.

_He hated it._

* * *

Although he did well in college due to finally gaining some independence for himself, he had trouble adjusting to the people around him.

What he saw and heard were all damning and pointless chit-chat but the way that they would smile and think that things were OK pissed him off. He wanted to see them under stress and see their real selves exposed. He didn't know WHY he wanted things that way, but he felt more comfortable with it, since he to wanted others to know what it was like to be under constant pressure and stress like himself.

Thus began his days as an amateur detective.

To hone his skills, he followed his classmates (especially the girls) and made notes about who did what, what day, when and where. Luckily he lived alone in his student apartment and so had all the time to keep his _"hobby"_ private.

He decorated his room with details about others to a disturbing degree and made it public to the campus within a few months.

* * *

It was entertaining and fun at first, seeing the students turn on each other (friendships broken and challenged, accusations and trust on thin ice) and watching their spirits break but soon the REAL detectives got involved and he had stopped tailing his peers.

Seeing how the cops stopped his fun, he thought it would play out like it did in the movies, with a chase or a game of cat and mouse. Yet no such thing happened as the cops focused on other things happening ranging from rape, murder, drugs and theft.

Yet he came to the conclusion, that if he had not had a clean record, that maybe he couldn't be a cop.

* * *

He graduated quietly and went to cadet school where he excelled at the target range. He graduated near the top and was given his equipment and other gadgets.

He fell in love with the gun.

He was assigned to Tatsumi Port Island.

* * *

Unfortunately for him, as his first day as a rookie, he had embarrassed himself in front of the whole department by almost shooting their retiring chief.

Shaky and slippery hands, as he tried to make a good first impression on him and forgot about the safety.

He had gained a unfortunate nickname and became famous for his blunder.

* * *

Like in high school, he had his credit stolen by the more incompetent officers for when it came to solving cases but was promoted to detective keep him satisfied. Although happy with his new position and gun, he was bored doing paper work and wish it were like the movies.

* * *

His chance came when he was assigned to help with a kidnapping incident. Normally SWAT would be involved but this had just been a thug holding a noodle store owner at gun point.

He handed a megaphone to his superior officer and he started to talk to the leader.

Adachi fumbled with his gun again and it slipped and shot into the direction of the store.

* * *

_"The autopsy identified the man as Mr. Tatsumi, a regular customer of the noodle shop."_

_"He had eaten there because it reminded him of home and that he had left behind a wife and one son."_

_"His plans of adding to the man made island-"_

That didn't matter to Adachi, what **DID** was the fact that he was to be transferred in a few months.

There were a few legal issues to be worked out, and despite his experience on the force he had to start again as a newbie.

A few months later he was transferred to Inaba where he met his partner and they went to a gas station...

* * *

From there things went fuzzy and the team found themselves strapped to tables, similar to Naoto's dungeon.

* * *

**AN: Have fun trying to figure out who reflects what parts!**


End file.
